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Updated: July 13, 2025 @ 3:34 am
Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed Senate Bill 199 into law at Ripley Elementary School in Ripley on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The bill allows teachers to remove disruptive students from their classrooms.
Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed Senate Bill 199 into law at Ripley Elementary School in Ripley on Tuesday, April 15, 2025. The bill allows teachers to remove disruptive students from their classrooms.
West Virginia elementary school teachers have spent the last few years asking lawmakers for help addressing an uptick in violent and disruptive student behavior that includes punching, kicking and classroom destruction. On Tuesday, Gov. Patrick Morrisey .
ƵWe want our teachers teaching Ƶ not babysitting, not disciplining,Ƶ Morrisey said during a bill signing event at Ripley Elementary School in Ripley, West Virginia.
The measure, , also mandates that school mental health professionals assess removed students to see what could be causing the behavior.
The most violent attacks on elementary teachers are occurring most frequently in kindergarten classrooms. Educators say the problem is linked to the stateƵs ongoing substance abuse crisis, and kids are arriving at preschool or kindergarten dealing with trauma, neglect or behavioral issues as a result of .
Sen. Amy Grady, R-Mason, is a fourth grader teacher who spent two years working on the bill after to make it to the governorƵs desk last year.
ƵThe most important part is that we want to make sure that you guys always have a safe classroom and a safe learning environment to learn in and that your teachers have a safe environment to teach in,Ƶ Grady told Ripley Elementary students.
Addressing student discipline has been a top ask from teachers across the state as they say student behavior is worsening and data shows suspensions are increasing. Some lawmakers have said they must address the issue to protect teachers and boost the stateƵs struggling test scores.
State Schools Superintendent Michele Blatt supported the bill, saying, ƵI think we have something in place thatƵs really going to support our teachers and make a difference. IƵm thrilled that the governor has decided to sign this.Ƶ
ƵStreamlined processƵ for removing disruptive students
The bill outlines how and why teachers in kindergarten through sixth grade classrooms can immediately remove students who are violent, threatening or intimidating toward staff or peers, or studentsƵ whose behavior is impeding on other studentsƵ ability to learn. The House of Delegates amended the bill to include pre-K classrooms that are on public school grounds.
Morrisey called it a Ƶstreamlined processƵ for dealing with these students.
School counselors and social workers will now be required to determine any underlying cause of the childƵs behavior.
The measure gives the student a two- to four-week probationary period on a behavioral plan for improvement. If improvement isnƵt made, the student can be placed in an alternative school or behavioral intervention program.
Fewer than half of the stateƵs 55 counties have alternate learning centers.
ƵIf thereƵs no county program, the student may be removed from school and find alternative learning environments. Maybe itƵs a virtual school or other learning environments,Ƶ Morrisey said.
The Senate , and the House passed the measure with a . Three Democrats in the House opposed the measure, citing concerns about potentially unqualified counselors or social workers conducting an assessment to determine the underlying cause of a childƵs behavior.
The bill doesnƵt come with funding for schools to add behavioral support staff; some teachers told lawmakers that money and additional staff were key parts of addressing the problem.
Lawmakers also passed a bill permitting counties to ban cell phones in classrooms, which was a request from Morrisey. The session ended without any movement on teacher pay raises; West Virginia teachers are the lowest paid in the nation.
ƵWe know a lot more needs to be done,Ƶ Morrisey said. ƵReversing courses is a major priority for my administrationƵ IƵm going to do whatever it takes to make sure West Virginia kids excel.Ƶ
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